Black History

Know Your History, Know Yourself

MILWAUKEE COURIER — Black History Month is about many things, but above all it is about honoring and recognizing those who came before us.

Published

6 years ago

February 11, 2019

Oakland Post

By Alderman Ashanti Hamilton, Common Council President City of Milwaukee

Black History Month is about many things, but above all it is about honoring and recognizing those who came before us: our ancestors. It is about looking at our ancestors, our elders and the generations to come who will radically change the world. We read biographies, listen to speeches, look at photos and do a host of other activities to briefly acknowledge the impact that Blacks of African descent have had on the world. During these times, it reminds me of one of my personal heroes who set the standard for how we engage with the important practice of acknowledging Black History, Dr. Carter G. Woodson.

Dr. Woodson was the first person to proclaim the importance of tracking and analyzing the contributions of Black people throughout history. After graduating from Berea College, University of Chicago and Harvard University, Dr. Woodson established the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History. The expressed purpose of this organization was to legitimize Black history as a field of study and recognize Black Americans and their history as an integral part of the country’s story. In reality, Dr. Woodson was the father of Black History itself, in addition to the concept of Black History Month.

Knowing who you are and where you come from is a foundational piece of having value in yourself and your community. What are the historical contributions of people that look like you? What historical events can you take pride in? What can you be proud of as a member of the Black community? Dr. Woodson wanted to institutionalize the answers to these questions. He wanted everyone to be educated in a way that made this history a known and understood part of the historical fabric of the nation–not just a unit taught in a history class or a few reading assignments during February. The goal was always to have the broader community learn the realities of our history, not just the people who knew it through experience.

This is so important when we talk today about changing the narrative in Milwaukee. If people understand our history and are taught the ways that our systems and mainstream discussions mischaracterize and omit the contributions of Black people throughout history, then they are less likely to internalize this false narrative. Our community is so much more than being enslaved and fighting for civil rights, yet that is too often the simplistic perception of our history. To change the narrative of our community, we must educate the masses about the greatness of our history, proclaim the greatness of our history and live up to the greatness of our history. This begins with the practice of documenting and studying the history of Black Americans that Dr. Woodson pioneered.

Another remarkable thing about Dr. Woodson was that he radically changed life for Black Americans in such a unique and sometimes forgotten way. His purpose and life’s mission was educating people. He was imparting knowledge on them that they would not get from anyone else. And he was doing this in the 1920s, only a few decades after the legal emancipation of slaves. To honor his legacy, we must be intentional about educating people in the same way.

One of the reasons that I became an educator was that I had teachers and mentors in my life that were intentional about sharing this history with me. I had people who would not let me accept and internalize mainstream perceptions of me and my ancestors. Gaining that knowledge transformed the value I placed on my own life and the lives of those around me. I felt then and still feel obligated to pay that forward and educate future generations to understand their history in a more powerful context.

As I think about the number of books, essays and other writings that Dr. Woodson published, I immediately think of a passage from his seminal work, The Miseducation of the Negro:

Philosophers have long conceded, however, that every man has two educators: that which is given to him and that which he gives himself. Of the two kinds, the latter is by far the more desirable. Indeed, all that is most worthy in a man he must work out and conquer for himself. It is that which constitutes our real and best nourishment. What we are merely taught seldom nourishes the mind like that we teach ourselves.

This passage is a transformational piece for any member of our community to read and is just a drop in the ocean of publications and works that have are available to bring our history to life. We can read books like the Souls of Black Folk, I am Not Your Negro and The Autobiography of Malcolm X. We can go to the Wisconsin Black Historical Society Museum, America’s Black Holocaust Museum and the National African American History and Cultural Museum. We can talk to our elders and gain knowledge through the rich oral history that they can share. These are opportunities to learn some of these would not have existed without Dr. Woodson and we owe it to his legacy to take advantage.

My call to us today is to use this month as an opportunity to engage with our history in an intentional way now and every day for the rest of our lives. More importantly, we need to teach our children this history from a young age and never allow them to doubt their value and greatness. As a community, we have so much to take pride in. Let’s learn about this history – because in doing so we learn about ourselves.

This article originally appeared in the Milwaukee Courier.

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Activism

‘Donald Trump Is Not a God:’ Rep. Bennie Thompson Blasts Trump’s Call to Jail Him

“Donald Trump is not a god,” U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., told The Grio during a recent interview, reacting to Trump’s unsupported claims that the congressman, along with other committee members like vice chair and former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney, destroyed evidence throughout the investigation.

Published

6 hours ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

Congressman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss. Courtesy photo.

By Post Staff

U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said he not intimidated by President-elect Donald Trump, who, during an interview on “Meet the Press,” called for the congressman to be jailed for his role as chairman of the special congressional committee investigating Trump’s role in the Jan. 6, 2021, mob attack on the U.S. Capitol.

“Donald Trump is not a god,” Thompson told The Grio during a recent interview, reacting to Trump’s unsupported claims that the congressman, along with other committee members like vice chair and former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney, destroyed evidence throughout the investigation.

“He can’t prove it, nor has there been any other proof offered, which tells me that he really doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” said the 76-year-old lawmaker, who maintained that he and the bipartisan Jan. 6 Select Committee – which referred Trump for criminal prosecution – were exercising their constitutional and legislative duties.

“When someone disagrees with you, that doesn’t make it illegal; that doesn’t even make it wrong,” Thompson said, “The greatness of this country is that everyone can have their own opinion about any subject, and so for an incoming president who disagrees with the work of Congress to say ‘because I disagree, I want them jailed,’ is absolutely unbelievable.”

When asked by The Grio if he is concerned about his physical safety amid continued public ridicule from Trump, whose supporters have already proven to be violent, Thompson said, “I think every member of Congress here has to have some degree of concern, because you just never know.”

This story is based on a report from The Grio.

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Activism

Biden’s Legacy Secured with Record-Setting Black Judicial Appointments

His record surpasses previous efforts by his predecessors. President Jimmy Carter appointed 37 Black judges, including seven Black women. In stark contrast, Donald Trump’s first term resulted in only two Black women appointed out of 234 lifetime judicial nominations. The White House said Biden’s efforts show a broader commitment to racial equity and justice.

Published

7 hours ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

iStockphoto.

By Stacy M. Brown
WI Senior Writer

President Joe Biden’s commitment to diversifying the federal judiciary has culminated in a historic achievement: appointing 40 Black women to lifetime judgeships, the most of any president in U.S. history.

Biden has appointed 62 Black judges, cementing his presidency as one focused on promoting equity and representation on the federal bench.

The White House said Biden’s efforts show a broader commitment to racial equity and justice.

Meanwhile, Trump has vowed to dismantle key civil rights protections, including the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

“Having the Black woman’s experience on the federal bench is extremely important because there is a different kind of voice that can come from the Black female from the bench,” Delores Jones-Brown, professor emeritus at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, told reporters.

Lena Zwarensteyn of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights told reporters that these district court judges are often the first and sometimes the final arbiters in cases affecting healthcare access, education equity, fair hiring practices, and voting rights.

“Those decisions are often the very final decisions because very few cases actually get heard by the U.S. Supreme Court,” Zwarensteyn explained.

Biden’s nomination of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court further reflects his commitment to judicial diversity. Jackson became the first Black woman to serve on the nation’s highest court.

Patrick McNeil, spokesperson for the Leadership Conference, pointed out that over half of Biden’s Black female judicial appointees have backgrounds as civil rights attorneys and public defenders, experience advocates consider essential for a balanced judiciary.

Meanwhile, Congress remains divided over the expansion of federal judgeships. Legislation to add 66 new judgeships—approved unanimously by the Senate in August—stalled in the GOP-controlled House until after the election. House Republicans proposed distributing the new judgeships over the next decade, giving three administrations a say in appointments. President Biden, however, signaled he would veto the bill if it reached his desk.

Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., argued the delay was a strategic move to benefit Trump’s potential return to office. “Donald Trump has made clear that he intends to expand the power of the presidency and giving him 25 new judges to appoint gives him one more tool at his disposal,” Nadler said.

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Arts and Culture

Promise Marks Performs Songs of Etta James in One-Woman Show, “A Sunday Kind of Love” at the Black Repertory Theater in Berkeley

“The (show) is a fictional story about a character named Etta, aka Lady Peaches,” said Marks. “She falls in love with Johnny Rhythm, leader of the Rhythm Players Band and headliners of Madam G’s Glitta Lounge.” Marks channeled the essence of Etta James, singing favorites such as “Sugar on the Floor” and “At Last.”

Published

8 hours ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

Photo Courtesy Of Promise Marks.

Special to the Post

It was “A Sunday Kind of Love” at the Black Repertory Group Theater in Berkeley on Saturday night, Dec. 7. The one-woman musical based on the music of Etta James featured the multi-talented singer Promise Marks

Marks, who wrote and directed the musical, also owns PM Productions.

Marks channeled the essence of Etta James, singing favorites such as “Sugar on the Floor” and “At Last.”

In between her soulful songs, Marks narrated impactful moments of the love story and journey of blues and forgiveness.

Marks sultry voice carried the audience back to an era that echoed with the power of Black music and a time of great change.

Marks said James shared love for the Black community by singing at gatherings during the Civil Rights Movement uplifting the people.

“She spoke to the movement, spoke to the people, and let her music speak for itself,” Marks said.

Backing the musical’s monologues, images and videos of Etta James are projected for the audience to view. While the production is fictional, Marks infused script with the unfairness and heartbreak James experienced while performing.

Marks performed gospel artist Donnie McClurkin’s “We Fall Down” as she narrated acts of reconciliation and forgiveness among the characters at Johnny Rhythm’s deathbed.

Marks, who regularly sings for the Miss America Pageant, was asked to perform as Etta James last year. “(At the event) a lady yelled out to me: ‘You’re Etta James!’ And then the audience went crazy. I said to myself, ‘I may have something here,’” she said.

Within 12 months, Marks created the musical production, which featured a dozen songs honoring “the great legacy of Etta James,” she said.

Marks says she was saddened to see how Etta James was often judged by the struggles in her life and wanted to offer attendees a more layered view.

“Etta’s life was so big. I want people to know that she was more than her drug addiction,” said Marks. “We can’t make that her legacy. Her catalog is too amazing. You can’t just be that and have the catalog that she (created). I don’t want the addiction to be the focus: I want her music, her element, her sassiness, and what she brought to be the focus – her woman-ness, that she was strong, and I wanted to honor that.”

Set Designer Nora Burnette says she created the set segments to mirror James’ life story. A set designer for BRG since 2016, she explained that her process of researching the scenario and the character serve as her inspiration for her design.

“I try to design a set as close to real life as possible so that the actress can deliver the performance sincerely,” said Burnette. “By creating the right setting, it helps the actors release the true essence of a character.”

The set brought the story to life and absolutely floored Marks. “Once Promise (Marks) saw the actual set, she understood my vision: ‘Wow, you get me. You get it,'” Marks told the designer.

Born Jamesetta Hawkins, Etta James, began her career in 1954 and gained fame with hits such “At Last” and “I’d Rather Go Blind.” She faced a number of personal problems, before making a musical comeback in the late 1980s with the album “Seven Year Itch.”

Co-producer and BRG Development Director, Sean Vaughn Scott, works with Overseer Production. According to producer Pamela Spikes, “Marks talent truly does Etta’s life story justice.”

Pam Jacobs of Hercules, a friend of Marks’ mom, Jackie Smith, said, Marks “was fabulous and sang all of those songs flawlessly.”

“I’m so proud of my daughter,” said Smith.

Marks, who has served as an instructor for BRG, will return on Feb. 21- 23 for an encore run of the musical.

“It’s an honor to be a part of the BRG (Black Repertory Group) family and continue our executive director Dr. Mona Vaughn Scott’s vision for the Black Repertory Group theater,” said Marks.

The Black Repertory Group Theatre is located at 3201 Adeline St., Berkeley, CA 94703. For information, visit: BlackRepertoryGroup.com